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11'. W'.,FERGUSON. IRONING BOARD.

Patented Feb. 5,1884.

(No Model V 'M MW? u PETERS. Pholo-Lilllcgnphon wmm mh o c.

UNITED STATES ,ATENT FFICEO ROBERT WV. FERGUSON OF DECATUR, ILLINOIS,ASSIGNOR TO \VILLIAM B.

CLARK AND FRAZIER "W. NEVIUS, BOTH OF SAME PLACE.

lRONlNG-BOARD.

SPECIFICATION forn ing part of Letters Patent No. 292,904, .datedFebruary 5, 1884,

' Application filed April-9,1883. (No model.) a

i To ctZZ whom it may concern-.-

Be it known that 1, ROBERT W. FERGUSON,

a citizen of the United States, residing at De- Improvements inIroning-Boards, of which' I declare the following to be a full, clear,and

exact description.

My present invention has for its object to provide an ironing-board ofthe class commonly known to the trade as bosomboards, with improvedmeans whereby the shirt can be tightly stretched against the boardduring the ironing operation. This object of invention I haveaccomplished by the mechanism, hereinafter described, illustrated in theaccompanying drawings, and particularly defined in the claims at the endof this specification.

Figure 1 is a detail side View of one end of the board and the hingedflap and clamp wire. Figs. 2 and 3 are respectively a side and a rearview of the board.

A designates the body of the board, which .may be of any desired length,preferably ten by eighteen inches, and which is suitably padded uponboth its surfaces. In one end of this board are embedded the ends bofthe wire springs B, which constitute the collar-band stretcher, the endsI) of these springs being held in a manner free to slide within the eyesor rings B, and being upturned, as at Z), to prevent their withdrawalfrom such eyes. The enlarged upper portion of the holes in which theends are held permit a slight movement of such parts of the wires. Tothe op posite ends of the board A, which is convex, the strip or flap(6', having concavededge, is attached by means of the hinges a,preferably located upon the side edges of the board and strip, but whichmay, if desired, be placed in other position. The strap or flap A is, aswill be seen, somewhat broader than the board, and is provided-upon itsfront edge with the long groove a, to receive the clamp-wire C, anduponits side edges with the double grooves a, the function of which isto receive the side bars of a plaiting-frame, which I have reserved toform the subject-matter of a sepais of steel, is bent, as shown, and hasits ends 0 driven obliquelyinto the side edges of the board; and, aswill be noticed, the outer portions of the holes which receive the endsof theclamp-wire G are somewhat larger than this wire, so as to permitits slight movement as it is drawn forward by the hinged flap.

- From the foregoing construction it will be seen that when the hingedflap is turned back at an angle to the board the ends 0 of theclamp-wire are in the rear of the enlarged sockets; but when the flap,with the clampwire thereon, is turned down into the plane of the boardthe wire is drawn slightly forward and exerts pressure upon the "edge ofthe flap.

-The operation of the mechanism thus far described is as follows: TheboardAis placed inside the shirt, the collar-band of which is buttoned,and is drawndown over the collar-bandstretching wires B and the bosom issmoothly laid upon the board. The clamp-wire G is now turned intoavertical position and the goods are drawn tightly over the same anddown to the board, when the hinged flap israised and the clamp wire,with the goods around it, is pressed into the groove of the front edge.As the flap and clamp-wire,with the goods firmly held thereby, are nowturned toward a horizontal position, a tension is exerted upon theshirt-front, which is increased until the flap is in plane with theboard, and the bosom is stretched tightly thereon, ready to'be ironed.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is

1. The combination, with the body of the board, of the flap hingedthereto, and having a grooved front edge and a pivoted clampwire,substantially as described.

2. The combination, with the body of the board, of the flap hingedthereto, and a wire having its ends pivotally connected to the body ofthe board, said wire forming a clamp for the flap, substantially asdescribed.

3. The combination, with the body of the board, of the flap hingedthereto, and a clampwire having its 'ends driven obliquely into I rateapplication. This clamping-wire, which the board, said board being cutaway near the In testimony whereof I have hereunto set 10 ends of saidwire, substantially as and for the my hand this 3d day of April, A. D.1883. purposes set forth. I V

4. The c0mbinati0n,with the board and the ROBERT V; FERGUSON. eyes orsockets, 0f the wires 13, bent substantially as shown, and having theirinner ends In presence ofembedded in the board and their outer ends S.F. GREER, upturned and movably held in the eyes, sub- L. F. SKELLEY.stantially as described.

